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Baby oil usually has fragrance and other additives like Vitamin E and Aloe Vera. I wouldn't use it just based on the smell alone.

_________________Only after Winter comes do we know that the pine and the cypress are the last to fade.

Melampus

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2014 3:02 pm

Forum Moderator

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 10:42 amPosts: 3915Location: USA... mostly.

ALTOS <> I reckon our semantics differ slightly as a "good coat of oil" is what I apply... with my finger.

You've been around long enough to know my literal demeanor. To slather, is to apply thickly. Common sense dictates oil is a liquid, and this liquid, albeit viscous, has its limits when it comes to applying thickly. G-D DAMN GRAVITY! I apply as thickly as I can w/o drippage... I slather. Why? Because the goal here is to penetrate the pores as deeply as possible with as much oil as possible so as to disallow contaminants like water to enter & degrade the wood. A simple swiping only penetrates superficially, but I know you knew this as you reapply in the morning in attempts to penetrate deeper. I find the second application nothing more than moot inefficency; albeit necessary, if you had employed only a swipe the prior evening.

This segues into your, "let it rest overnight". How do you do this? I for one, do not let knives rest out; I put them away into their drawer, toolbox, etc. Even on a magnet (I don't use), it opens the possibility of someone grabbing it... an oily handle. An oily handle, oily from applying a good coat w/your finger or from a finger slathering , is going to soil anything & everything around it... this is oil we're employing here. Put it in the original knife box, in the morning the box is saturated. Lay it on a cloth or paper towel, outside of the obvious fact that in the morning the towel will be saturated which will spread to wherever said towel is resting, but just as obviously, a towel is absorbent which is exactly what you're trying to avoid here. You want the oil in the Wa, not in the towel or the box or the paper or whatever the hell else someone imagines up.

This is not rocket science; it's wearing a rubber. Suck as they miserably may, I do my damndest to not leave remnants where I don't want to.

That said, I see later in this thread you explain a different variation of your application whereas, albeit after a sanding, you explain you apply & reapply for up to an hour then wipe excess. Again, why waste the time? Apply liberally, cover it, and go to sleep... you're going to anyhow. One step... done, and it effectively saturates more oil into the wood overall. Why employ more effort for less efficacy?

That segues into RAYONG's brainstorm. First, to you RAYONG, I've been doing this for years, and that is why I recommend it as described. I have used plastic, but the pictured ZipLoc is more effective. You will invariably get some degree of leakage using plastic wrap... unless of course for the sake of disproving me, you go to town with a whole roll and waste more time and energy than it's worth when you can just slip it in a bag & zip to the emoto. Additionally, though your oil/wa contact comment is ambiguous, at best, I think I get what you're laying down. The goal with my method is not to submerge the Wa; it is to retain leakage. If you want to submerge, follow ROOK's method as his is tried & true. I'm not blowing myself, or ROOK for that matter, but there are times when experience & wisdom is worth listening to. Let me also be clear that I AM NOT of the opinion that my or ROOK's words are the gospel, but I have found & am reminded of daily, that common sense is all too uncommon. This is basic stuff, but a fundamental basis of employing core basic method is what separates the wheat from the chaff.

I'm not being snappy; it simply confuses me as to why everyone wants to reinvent the wheel. I and others here have gone through the trials & tribulations over years of R&D, and share our experience to assist here. Some take it, some fight it...

And futhermore RAYONG, what do you think is any different between life expectancy for a wood Wa & a wood Yo... assuming they're the same woods? Conceptually, a Yo actually should last less as the opportunity for water/contaminates to penetrate the wood is exacerbated exponentially by the linear presentation of two scales being riveted to a steel tang. That gives contaminates 2 or 3 rivets to penetrate on both sides, it has the entire circumjacence of tang to scales to penetrate, and where the scales meet the bolster (assuming it has one as 95% do). I haven't owned any Wa's from birth, 40 years ago, but the Wa's I have will be in as good a shape as I maintain them to in the upcoming years. I'd say the next 40, but I'll have had long since ceased. Handles, as do steel, last as long as you care for them. Yes, heavy usage may retire one or both components of a knife before you die, but if you use a knife that much... you most likely would not be asking this question.

And to address DOUG's qoute of CEDAR, I will quote myself from two years ago... "Let the wood get wet and then let it air dry. This might have no effect on your handles, but in all likelihood will cause the grain to rise. I then sand it lightly with fine paper, then with 000 steel wool. Slather the handles pretty liberally with a beeswax/mineral oil paste consisting of 20% beeswax:80% mineral oil mixed in a double-boiler, wipe off excess, let it sit overnight, then buff it in the morning. You could do that a few nights in a row or as needed until the handle feels silky smooth, polished and “sealed” (although, technically it’s not really sealed)."

The method I explained there is very effective for a quarterly application schedule you hear reverberating amid this thread. Although I will add, I no longer waste the time. That is said from the perspective of a professional Chef. My handles' seals won't last 3 months... NO WAY. The added benefit of the wax only extends the seal's life by so much. In a residence, it's by far the way to go. ITK, it doesn't pay off. IT IS SO QUICK, unarguably effective, and SO EASY to do as I explain 21 posts ago. Every sharpening, slather oil, throw in a bag, use the next day. DONE!

_________________Embracing the silence amid a life and land full of static...

I tried Mineral Oil before, but it didn't last very long. I now use Pure Tung Oil from WoodCraft. Pure stuff, not the stuff with solvents and garbage in it. Wipe on, let sit for 5 minutes, wipe off the excess. Put another coat on, let soak in a few minutes, wipe off and set aside overnight to dry. It likes to dry for a longer period than Mineral oil (it will feel tacky when it gets wet if the Tung Oil isn't fully dry), but it hardens in the pores and lasts a lot longer than Mineral Oil does. I use it on all of my custom handles and it lasts a pretty good amount of time, too. Several handles were done over the summer with it and haven't needed a refreshing yet. These are stabilized and non stabilized handles, haven't tried it on Ho or Magnolia wood yet because I don't have very many knives with those handles on them anymore! Just another option if people are looking for a longer lasting handle finish.

Mineral Oil is clear, much thinner and will soak in quicker/deeper, Tung Oil is amber in color, thicker and will take a bit longer to soak in/dry, but lasts longer.

FingerCots

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 12:07 am

Joined: Sun Nov 17, 2013 7:44 pmPosts: 45Location: Tampa, FL.

This was a no brainer. I "shampoo" & "Conditioner" my Cherry Wood Board but never thought about my knife handles. So after seeing Mel's initial post, I did all my knives the same way. And It just so happens that my 240 Teruyasu was arriving the next day,( 3/5/14), it was perfect timing. Rubbed'em down with the boardcream and covered with a cryobag and rubberband, then let sit over night for 18hours. I'm sure I'll repeat the process this weekend and rubb'em down Sat night after closing and unwrapp upon arrival Tuesday Morning. The Shimo Honesuki mosdef needs it again. The Yuki Bunka came out decent. The Teruyasu Santoko and The 240 Kanehiro came out real rich. And the 240 Teruyasu felt swell. The only ones I didn't do Wednesday were My Kono HD 270 funy and the Kono Fuji Bunka Blue #2, Hey I still needed to prep a bunch. So Melampus, thanks for the nudge down this avenue.

Melampus

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 12:17 am

Forum Moderator

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 10:42 amPosts: 3915Location: USA... mostly.

You're more than welcome COTS.

Love me or hate me... I'm just here to help.

_________________Embracing the silence amid a life and land full of static...

dougmc

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 9:15 am

Joined: Tue Aug 27, 2013 8:10 amPosts: 181

Melampus> I always enjoy your rants, and usually learn something. Most of us realize you read more emphatically than you intended. That's part of your charm.

Rage on.

Dan_Crubenew

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:16 am

Joined: Tue Aug 06, 2013 6:44 pmPosts: 1374

I also have 4 knives sitting in a ziploc bag right now to try this out, haha.

I think I like it better than soaking them in a bottle.

_________________Only after Winter comes do we know that the pine and the cypress are the last to fade.

cedarhouse

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 1:37 pm

Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 12:20 amPosts: 4152

"I think I like it better than soaking them in a bottle."

When I did mine, I placed my 240mm gyutos sitting upright in a pint glass filled to the top with mineral oil. I really don't see how anything could have gone wrong.

Melampus

Post subject: Re: >> Oiling Wa's <<

Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 2:33 pm

Forum Moderator

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 10:42 amPosts: 3915Location: USA... mostly.

DOUG <>

DAN <> It's tried & true.

CEDAR <>

_________________Embracing the silence amid a life and land full of static...

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